Stealth
– This term refers to when a person chooses to be secretive in
the

public sphere about their gender history, either after
transitioning or while

successful passing. (Also referred to as ‘going stealth’ or
‘living in stealth mode’.)

Stereotype
– A preconceived or oversimplified generalization about an
entire

group of people without regard for their individual differences.
Though often

negative, can also be complimentary. Even positive stereotypes
can have a

negative impact, however, simply because they involve broad
generalizations

that ignore individual realities.

Straight
– Another term for heterosexual.

Straight-Acting
– A term usually applied to gay men who readily pass as

heterosexual. The term implies that there is a certain way that
gay men should

act that is significantly different from heterosexual men.
Straight-acting gay men

are often looked down upon in the LGBTQ community for seemingly
accessing

heterosexual privilege.

Trans
- An abbreviation that is sometimes used to refer to a gender
variant

person. This use allows a person to state a gender variant
identity without

having to disclose hormonal or surgical status/intentions. This
term is sometimes

used to refer to the gender variant community as a whole.

Transactivism-
The political and social movement to create equality for gender

variant persons.

Transgender
– A person who lives as a member of a gender other than that

expected based on anatomical sex. Sexual orientation varies and
is not

dependent on gender identity.

Transgendered (Trans) Community
– A loose category of people who

transcend gender norms in a wide variety of ways. The central
ethic of this

community is unconditional acceptance of individual exercise of
freedoms

including gender and sexual identity and orientation.

Transhate
– The irrational hatred of those who are gender variant, usually

expressed through violent and often deadly means.

Transition
– This term is primarily used to refer to the process a gender
variant

person undergoes when changing their bodily appearance either to
be more

congruent with the gender/sex they feel themselves to be and/or
to be in

harmony with their preferred gender expression.

Transman—An
identity label sometimes adopted by female-to-male

transsexuals to signify that they are men while still affirming
their history as

females. Also referred to as ‘transguy(s).’

Transphobia
– The irrational fear of those who are gender variant and/or the

inability to deal with gender ambiguity.

Transsexual
– A person who identifies psychologically as a gender/sex other

than the one to which they were assigned at birth. Transsexuals
often wish to

transform their bodies hormonally and surgically to match their
inner sense of

gender/sex.

Transvestite
– Someone who dresses in clothing generally identified with the

opposite gender/sex. While the terms ‘homosexual’ and
‘transvestite’ have been

used synonymously, they are in fact signify two different
groups. The majority of

transvestites are heterosexual males who derive pleasure from
dressing in

“women’s clothing”. (The preferred term is ‘cross-dresser,’ but
the term

‘transvestite’ is still used in a positive sense in England.)

Transwoman--
An identity label sometimes adopted by male-to-female

transsexuals to signify that they are women while still
affirming their history as

males.

Two-Spirited
– Native persons who have attributes of both genders, have

distinct gender and social roles in their tribes, and are often
involved with

mystical rituals (shamans). Their dress is usually mixture of
male and female

articles and they are seen as a separate or third gender. The
term ‘two-spirit’ is

usually considered to specific to the Zuni tribe. Similar
identity labels vary by tribe

and include ‘one-spirit’ and ‘wintke’.

Citation:
This terminology sheet was created by Eli R. Green (eli@trans-academics.org)
and EricN. Peterson at the LGBT Resource Center at UC Riverside “
2003-2004 , with additionalinput from www.wikipedia.org and many kind people who helped use
create and revisethese definitions.

These are some symbols that have been adopted by LGBTQ
people and their allies.

The Double Women's Sign

=

Also known as "the mirror of Venus,"
this symbol represents the planet Venus, metal, copper and
femininity. It also represents women loving women.

The Double Men's Sign

Derived from the astrological symbol of Mars who was the Greek
God of War and patron of warriors. The arrow is a phallic
symbol. A double man's symbol represents men loving men.

The Rainbow Flag

The Rainbow Flag was adopted by the LGBT community as its own
design. It depicts not the shape of the rainbow but its colors
in horizontal stripes. Created in 1978 for

San Francisco's Gay Freedom Celebration by local artist, Gilbert
Baker, it was inspired by the "Flag of the Races," which had
five stripes-one each for the colors of humankind's skill, flown
at the 1960's college demonstrations. Major gay and lesbian
parades in New York, Houston, Vancouver and Toronto began to fly
the six-stripe Rainbow Flag. It is prominently displayed at most
gay and lesbian events. In New York, the flag drapes coffins of
people who have died of AIDS, and is frequently displayed on
hospital doors. The AIDS ward of a Sidney, Australia hospital
flew the flag as a symbol of hope. A gay yacht club in the
Netherlands uses a burgee based on the Rainbow Flag. In a few
short years, the flag has spread world wide to represent a
movement. Its success is not due to any official recognition,
although it has been recognized by the International Flagmakers
Association as the LGBT Freedom Flag, but to the widespread
spontaneous adoption by members of the community it represents.

The Labrys

The double-bladed ax comes from myth as the scepter of the
goddess Demeter (Artemis). It may have originally been used in
battle by female Sythian warriors. The Labrys appears in ancient
Cretan art and has become a symbol of lesbianism.

The Lambda

Chosen by the Gay Activist Alliance in 1970 as the symbol of the
gay movement, the lambda is the Greek letter "I." A battle flag
with the lambda was carried by a regiment of ancient Greek
warriors who were accompanied in battle by their young male
lovers and noted for their fierceness and willingness to fight
to the death. It is also the symbol for justice.

Freedom Rings

Designed by David Spada with the Rainbow Flag in mind, these six
colored aluminum rings have come to symbolize independence and
tolerance. The rings are frequently displayed or worn as jewelry
and maybe found as necklaces, bracelets, rings and key chains.

The Pink Triangle

The pink triangle is easily one of the more popular and
widely-recognized symbols for the LGBT community. The pink
triangle is rooted in World War II times, and reminds us of the
tragedies of that era. Although homosexuals were only one of the
many groups targeted for extermination by the Nazi regime, it is
unfortunately the group that history often excludes. The pink
triangle challenges that notion, and defies anyone to deny
history.

The history of the pink triangle begins before WWII, during
Adolf Hitler's rise to power. Paragraph 175, a clause in German
law prohibiting homosexual relations, was revised by Hitler in
1935 to include kissing, embracing, and gay fantasies as well as
sexual acts. Convicted offenders - an estimated 25,000 just from
1937 to 1939 - were sent to prison and then later to
concentration camps. Their sentence was to be sterilized, and
this was most often accomplished by castration. In 1942 Hitler's
punishment for homosexuality was extended to death.

Each prisoner in the concentration camps wore a colored inverted
triangle to designate their reason for incarceration, and hence
the designation also served to form a sort of social hierarchy
among the prisoners. A green triangle marked its wearer as a
regular criminal; a red triangle denoted a political prisoner.
Two yellow triangles overlapping

to form a Star of David designated a Jewish prisoner. The pink
triangle was for homosexuals. A yellow Star of David under a
superimposed pink triangle marked the lowest of all prisoners -
a homosexual Jew.

Stories of the camps depict homosexual prisoners being given the
worst tasks and labors. Pink triangle prisoners were also a
proportionally large focus of attacks from the guards and even
other inmates. Although the total number of the homosexual
prisoners is not known, official Nazi estimates were an
underwhelming 10,000.

Estimates of the number of gay men killed during the Nazi regime
range from 50,000 to twice that figure. When the war was finally
over, countless many homosexuals remained prisoners in the
camps, because Paragraph 175 remained law in West Germany until
its repeal in 1969.

In the 1970's, gay liberation groups resurrected the pink
triangle as a popular symbol for the gay rights movement. Not
only is the symbol easily recognized, but it draws attention to
oppression and persecution -then and now. In the 1980's, ACT-UP
(AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) began using the pink triangle
for their cause. They inverted the symbol, making it point up,
to signify an active fight back rather than a passive
resignation to fate. Today, for many the pink triangle
represents pride, solidarity, and a promise to never allow
another Holocaust to happen again.

The Black Triangle

Like the pink triangle, the black triangle is also rooted in
Nazi Germany. Although lesbians were not included in the
Paragraph 175 prohibition of homosexuality, there is evidence to
indicate that the black triangle was used to designate prisoners
with anti-social behavior. Considering that the Nazi idea of
womanhood focused on children, kitchen, and church, black
triangle prisoners may have included lesbians, prostitutes,
women who refused to bear children, and women with other
"anti-social" traits. As the pink triangle is historically a
male symbol, the black triangle has similarly been reclaimed by
lesbians and feminists as a symbol of pride and solidarity.

Possible
Needs: May explore internal positive and negative judgments.
Will be permitted to be uncertain regarding sexual identity. May
find support in knowing that sexual behavior occurs along a
spectrum. May receive permission and encouragement to explore
sexual identity as a normal experience (like career identity,
and social identity).

STAGE 2:
IDENTITY COMPARISON: "Maybe this does apply to me." Will accept
the possibility that she or he may be gay. Self-alienation
becomes isolation.

Task: Deal
with social alienation.

Possible
Responses: May begin to grieve for losses and the things she or
he will give up by embracing their sexual orientation. May
compartmentalize their own sexuality. Accepts lesbian, gay
definition of behavior but maintains "heterosexual" identity of
self. Tells oneself, "It's only temporary;" I'm just in love
with this particular woman/man," etc.

Possible
Needs: Will be very important that the person develops own
definitions. Will need information about sexual identity,
lesbian, gay community resources, encouragement to talk about
loss of heterosexual life expectations. May be permitted to keep
some "heterosexual" identity (it is not an all or none issue).

STAGE 3:
IDENTITY TOLERANCE: "I'm not the only one." Accepts the
probability of being homosexual and recognizes sexual, social,
emotional needs that go with being lesbian and gay. Increased
commitment to being lesbian or gay.

Task:
Decrease social alienation by seeking out lesbians and gays.

Possible
Responses: Beginning to have language to talk and think about
the issue. Recognition that being lesbian or gay does not
preclude other options. Accentuates difference between self and
heterosexuals. Seeks out lesbian and gay culture (positive
contact leads to more positive sense of self, negative contact
leads to devaluation of the culture, stops growth). May try out
variety of stereotypical roles.

Possible
Needs: Be supported in exploring own shame feelings derived from
heterosexism, as well as external heterosexism. Receive support
in finding positive lesbian, gay community connections. It is
particularly important for the person to know community
resources.

STAGE 4:
IDENTITY ACCEPTANCE: "I will be okay." Accepts, rather than
tolerates, gay or lesbian self-image. There is continuing and
increased contact with the gay and lesbian culture.

Task: Deal
with inner tension of no longer subscribing to society's norm,
attempt to bring congruence between private and public view of
self.

Possible
Responses: Accepts gay or lesbian self identification. May
compartmentalize "gay life." Maintains less and less contact
with heterosexual community. Attempts to "fit in" and "not make
waves" within the gay and lesbian community. Begins some
selective disclosures of sexual identity. More social coming
out; more comfortable being seen with groups of men or women
that are identified as "gay." More realistic evaluation of
situation.

Possible
Needs: Continue exploring grief and loss of heterosexual life
expectations. Continue exploring internalized "homophobia"
(learned shame for heterosexist society). Find support in making
decisions about where, when, and to whom he or she self
discloses.

STAGE 5:
IDENTITY PRIDE: "I've got to let people know who I am!" Immerses
self in gay and lesbian culture. Less and less involvement with
heterosexual community. Us-them quality to political/social
viewpoint.

disclosure
crises with heterosexuals as he or she is less willing to "blend
in." Identifies gay culture as sole source of support; all gay
friends, business connections, social connections.

Possible
Needs: Receive support for exploring anger issues. Find support
for exploring issues of heterosexism. Develop skills for coping
with reactions and responses to disclosure of sexual identity.
Resist being defensive!

STAGE 6:
IDENTITY SYNTHESIS: Develops holistic view of self. Defines self
in a more complete fashion, not just in terms of sexual
orientation.

Task:
Integrate gay and lesbian identity so that instead of being the
identity, it is on

aspect of
self.

Possible
Responses: Continues to be angry at heterosexism, but with
decreased intensity. Allows trust of others to increase and
build. Gay and lesbian identity is integrated with all aspects
of "self." Feels all right to move out into the community and
not simply define space according to sexual orientation.